The Notre Dame fencing program has produced more than its share of
individual and team champions during its glorious history, but the 2001
squad boasts what could prove to be one of the top one-two punches in the
program's 64-years of varsity competition.

Junior sabreman Gabor Szelle (Budapest, Hungary) and sophomore
foilist Ozren Debic (Zagreb, Croatia) return to lead Notre Dame in 2001,
after dominating efforts last season that placed them near the top of
collegiate fencing.

The devastating tandem of Szelle and Debic leads the way for an
Irish fencing program that returns 11 of its 12 fencers that qualified for
the 2000 NCAA Championship. While four-time All-American Magda Krol will be
hard to replace (she fenced epee for three years and foil in 2000), the
Notre Dame women return All-Americans at each weapon (four overall,
including two epeeists) while the Irish men's squad includes five former
All-Americans (led by two epeeists and two sabremen).

"This team stacks up as another national title contender, because
of the experience that we have coming back from last year and simply
because of the fact that we have nine fencers who already have proven that
they can compete at a high level by earning All-America honors," says Yves
Auriol, now in his sixth year as head coach of both Irish teams after
serving the previous 10 seasons as head coach of the Notre Dame women's
program.

"We are particularly strong and deep at men's epee and sabre and
women's epee, so it could come down to how we perform in the other three
weapons during the NCAAs."

Szelle-who placed second at the 1999 NCAA Championship-combined
with rookie Debic at the 2000 NCAAs to become just the fourth set of Notre
Dame teammates ever to finish first or second at the same NCAA competition.
Szelle captured the sabre championship while Debic finished as runner-up in
foil, with freshman Jan Viviani (Haworth, N.J.) posting an equally
impressive third-place finish in epee to help the Irish nearly catch Penn
State in their annual race for the men's and women's combined NCAA
championship (Penn State edged Notre Dame, 175-171).

In its storied history, the Irish fencing program has produced a
trio of top-three NCAA finishers in the same season just once previously-in
1978, when Mike Sullivan (sabre) and Bjorn Vaggo (epee) captured individual
titles while Pat Gerard was the foil runner-up.

That '78 season gave the Irish the men's fencing NCAA team title
but only Sullivan and Gerard returned for the 1979 season.

In 2001, the Notre Dame men's squad will return each of its
top-three finishers from last year's NCAA competition, producing an
unprecedented happening in the history of Irish fencing.

"With fencers like Gabor, Ozren and Jan leading the way for you at
each weapon, of course that puts the team in great position to compete for
the NCAA team title this season," says Auriol.

"They each have different styles of leadership for our team, but
first of all you are a leader out there on the fencing strip and they are
great leaders for our team in that regard."

Notre Dame's fencing triumvirate hails from wide-reaching
backgrounds, with Szelle a product of Hungary's rich fencing tradition
while Debic honed his craft in Croatia, where the limited fencing community
includes roughly 100 competitors nation-wide. Viviani was born in New York
City and has trained at the highly-regarded New York Athletic Club.

Debic's journey through the fencing subculture has seen him
transform from an athletically-gifted 10-year-old who had yet to discover
fencing into one of the world's most highly-regarded young foilists.

"Ozren is a very unusual fencer due to his physical abilities and
is the fastest fencer I've seen in 15 years at Notre Dame," says Auriol.

"He does things that I don't know how he does it, because his speed
and timing are very unique. He just has tremendous natural ability and has
a great future ahead of him in this sport."

Debic and Szelle both have proven to be accomplished all-around
athletes on the Notre Dame campus, somewhat of a rarity in the fencing
circles. "With a lot of fencers, they can just fence. But Ozren and Gabor
are great athletes and I've seen them play a number of sports at a pretty
high level," says Auriol. "That also shows what great competitors they are."

Szelle's dominance on the collegiate level-his 97-5 career record
yields the third-best winning percentage in Irish men's fencing history
(.951)-has not come as a surprise to Auriol.

"Gabor has benefitted from excellent coaching and training while
growing up in Hungary," says Auriol. "He is such a sharp and quick fencer,
which are traits you don't usually find in sabre, and has proven to be a
championship fencer in the highest regard."

Notre Dame's tremendous depth at men's sabre includes senior
Andrzej Bednarski (Granger, Ind.), who Auriol describes as having "the
prettiest style I've ever seen." The lightfooted lefthander is the son of
Irish assistant coach Janusz Bednarski and earned All-America honors in
1998 and 2000 while compiling a 93-17 career record.

Viviani joined Debic as a freshman phenom in the 2000 season, when
his quickness and fierce competitiveness produced a 32-7 pre-NCAA record
and eventual first-team All-America honors. Junior Brian Casas
(Mishawaka, Ind.)-who achieved All-America status in 1999-will be looking
to rebound from a disappointing 18th-place finish at the 2000 NCAAs, with
the keys to Casas' success possibly involving heightened aggressiveness to
go along with his strong technique and experience in the sport.

Sophomore North Carey (Los Alamos, N.M.) could use his strength and
improving technique to make an impact on the Irish epee squad in 2001 while
lefthanded senior Scott Gabler (Chatsworth, Calif.) rounds out the epee
squad's four-man travel squad.

With Debic, Szelle and Viviani headlining a talented and deep
men's squad, Notre Dame likewise could show strides on the women's side.

The Irish women return an unprecedented four All-Americans, a
sophomore group comprised of epeeists Anna Carnick and Meagan Call, Liza
Boutzikaris (foil) and Natalia Mazur, who placed 10th at the NCAAs to cap
the debut season of women's sabre.

"We should be stronger in the women's sabre, with the addition of
two strong freshmen in Destanie Milo and Jessie Filkins, and our biggest
challenge will be in the foil after losing Magda Krol," says Auriol, who
has watched Notre Dame finish as runnerup to Penn State in each of the past
five NCAA Championships.

"Every year we have strengths and weaknesses but this team has a
lot of the elements that it takes to be a national champion."

Carnick (Mishawaka, Ind.) is known for strong technical ability and
is coming off a 41-10 freshman season that featured a ninth-place NCAA
finish. Call (Eugene, Ore.), who turned in a 37-10 record and 12th-place
NCAA showing, has shown strides during her young Irish career and again
should be in the running for an NCAA spot.

The women's epee squad also includes second-year captain Kim DeMaio
(Pompton Lakes, N.J.) and promising freshman Kerry Walton (Londonberry,
N.H.), whose brother Forest is a starter on the Irish men's foil squad.
Walton is a strong and fast fencer who could develop into one of Notre
Dame's top epeeists as she gains experience and fine-tunes her technique.

Boutsikaris (Sparta, N.J.) is easing into a leadership role with
the women's foil squad, following a 36-18 freshman season and a 12th-place
finish in the NCAAs. A talented all-around fencer who combines quickness
with solid tactical knowledge, she is one of 10 New Jersey natives on the
current Irish roster (eight of whom are members of the four-fencer travel
squad at their respective weapons).

Promising freshman Maggie Jordan (Maplewood, N.J.) is a fast and
strong newcomer who could develop into a candidate for a spot in the NCAAs
while senior Katie Flanagan (North Hills, Pa.)-who posted a 36-13 record in
2000 sabre competition-and junior Michelle Sutton (Orlando, Fla.) round out
the Irish women's foil squad.

The spirited Mazur (Summit, N.J.) burst onto the scene in the
inaugural women's sabre season in 2000, when her physical style and clutch
performances led to a dominating 49-4 record and a 10th-place finish in the
NCAAs.

Senior Carianne McCullough (Philadelphia, Pa.) will serve as the
women's sabre captain in 2001, after a solid junior season that saw her
post a 41-12 record and advance to the NCAAs.

Filkins (Wilmette, Ill.) and Milo (Knox, Ind.) could develop into
NCAA-caliber performers in the sabre competition. Filkins is known as a
battler who could make big strides as she develops her technique in the
college game while Milo is a product of the nearby Indiana Fencing Academy
who is known for her quickness and fierce competitiveness.

As the Irish fencing program heads into yet another promising
season, the hope for Notre Dame's first fencing national championship since
1994 remains well within the team's sights.

"One thing that people often forget about when it comes to having
experience is that so many of our fencers know the feeling of coming close
to winning the national championship ... but coming up just short," says
Auriol.

"If this team performs to its potential, we should be there
competing for the national title again. Hopefully, this is the year that we
break through."